more on the Rape of Florida!

Sinkholes are not unique to Florida, but Florida certainly ranks highest in the nation. That’s because geologically speaking, Florida is very different (and hundreds of millions of years newer) than the rest of the US. Underneath a thin layer of dirt, sand, and clay, the entire Florida peninsula has a sub-surface that is essentially a porous plateau of carbonate rock (primarily sandstone and limestone) that was formed over many millions of years by marine fossils when the area was a warm, shallow sea.

Some 1,000 feet thick on average, this “porous plateau” is not solid, but rather, contains numerous caverns and watersheds that store and transmit groundwater, in what is referred to as the “Floridian aquifer system.” Encased in a body of saturated rock, these permeable aquifers contain enough drinking water for millions of Florida citizens. This landscape contains almost all of the fresh water resources for the population of north-central Florida.

However, the ground sediments that cover the aquifer systems are delicately balanced by ground-water fluid pressure. This back pressure from the water below ground actually helps to keep the surface soil in place. Sinkholes occur when slightly acidic groundwater dissolves the hollow carbonate rock beneath the soil, creating a large cavity. When the overlying ceiling can no longer support the weight of the soil (and whatever is on top of it), the earth collapses into the cavity. Even the saturation of the ground from excessive rainfall can make the sand layer heavier, and trigger a sinkhole.

Sinkholes can vary from a few feet to hundreds of acres. Examples include the 20-foot wide sinkhole that inhaled 37-year-old Jeff Bush as he slept (a sinkhole swallowed his entire bedroom in Seffner, Florida in 2013). Another sinkhole swallowed up an entire city block, including nearby streets and five Porsches at an auto body shop in Winter Park, Florida in 1981.

Although sinkholes are often regarded to as “natural” phenomena, they are exacerbated by alterations in the delicate balanced between ground-water and surface materials. Both changes to the land surface and groundwater pumping that lowers the water table (from activities like mining) are catalysts for sinkholes. According to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, the annual number of sinkhole claims has more than tripled in the past 10 years. The demand for water from Florida’s rapidly growing population of over 20 million people suggests that this trend will only continue.

The Phosphate Industry

Phosphate refers to rock that contains phosphate ions, and is mined to obtain phosphorus. An essential plant nutrient, phosphorus is never found as a free element but is present in fossilized mineral deposits and must be mined. China, Morocco and the United States account for about 70% of world production, the bulk of which is for use as an agricultural fertilizer. Florida contains the largest known deposits of phosphate in the US because of the marine fossils that make up its unique sub-surface, and phosphate based fertilizer is one of Florida’s leading export commodities.

Indeed, a blanket of phosphate deposits covers much of the Florida peninsula. In the areas that are considered economical to mine, the “matrix” layer (which consists of phosphate rock, clay, and sand), averages between 12 and 15 feet thick. However, this is buried well below the surface or “overburden” as it is referred to by the phosphate industry. The Unites States Geological Survey (USGS) believes that phosphate mining removes up to 100 feet of “overburden” despite the fact that it holds Florida’s real treasure, the aquifers that hold our water. Ironically, fresh water resources in Florida are much more valuable than the agricultural fertilizer that is being mined.

However, phosphate officials are “permitted” by the state of Florida to remove everything within this “overburden” (including freshwater resources), to get to the phosphate rock that they seek. This process is done in enormous tracts of land, turning the environment into something that resembles more of a lunar landscape. The strip mining process can create sinkholes simply by removing significant amounts of weight to get to the “matrix” layer that contains the phosphate rock.

Sinkholes not only occur near phosphate operations, but can occur miles from phosphate mining plants due to over-pumping from local aquifers. The local aquifer becomes starved for water, and in turn, water from other local aquifers now flow to the starved aquifer until the land above those aquifers becomes unstable, and sinkholes can occur at any time.

The Real Threat

Phosphate mines excavate raw pebble phosphate (the “matrix”) which contains a number of chemical impurities, including naturally occurring uranium at concentrations of approximately 100 ppm. This by-product (phospho-gypsum) has a far denser source of radioactive materials than would occur naturally, and its use is banned in most situations. In fact, the Department of Environmental Protection does not allow the phosphate mining industry to move this by-product off-site because it is so toxic. Accordingly, there are about 1 billion tons of phospho-gypsum stored in at least twenty “stacks” in central Florida, and an additional 30 million tons are currently being generated each year.

These gypsum stacks create environmental hazards in and around all phosphate mining facilities. The threat of radioactive by-product material comes from the uranium content being strip mined. Radium and radon exist in the decay chain of uranium and are known to cause various types of cancers. Radon is in the form of gas and in some cases the wind carries these toxins for miles. Even worse however, sinkholes are known to occur beneath the radioactive stacks due simply to their enormous weight.

The millions of tons of phospho-gypsum cause a much higher probability of sinkhole formation, and can allow billions of gallons of toxic waste to flow through the stacks and into the aquifers. These are not immediately detected, and thus can severely pollute Florida’s freshwater reserves. Only once they are seen from above the gypsum stack (by plane or helicopter) do they become obvious to the public. However, there are warning signs that the phosphate industry largely chooses to ignore.

For example, in August of 2016, WFLA News Channel 8 flew over and saw a massive sinkhole on top of a Mosaic Company gypsum stack in Polk County, just south of Lakeland. By then, over 200 million gallons of radioactive water had been dumped into the aquifer, with the threat of contamination kept hidden from neighbors. However, there were indications that the sinkhole was forming much earlier.

According to Don Rice, a retired hydrologist from the U.S. Geological Survey, data from local wells showed that the level of the aquifer had jumped 40 feet, something that would not happen naturally. Rather, it was a sign that solid material from the gypsum stack had dropped into the aquifer, boosting the water level like an ice cube dropped into a glass of water. The only explanation for such a phenomenon would have been a sinkhole starting to form, just like others that have happened before under gypsum stacks throughout central Florida.

“Mosaic should have seen the 2016 sinkhole coming,” Rice said, “when they saw those levels rising, they should have shut down that gypsum stack until they could see what was happening.” Moreover, Mosaic employees had noticed that the water level in the 78-acre pond of polluted water (on top of the gypsum stack) was dropping. However, they waited until weeks later to identify the problem as a sinkhole. By that time, all 215 million gallons of contaminated water had drained out. Even then, no one informed nearby residents whose drinking water comes from the same aquifer. Only after WFLA News Channel 8 broke the story did this become known to the general public.

Rice noted that if Mosaic had pumped the contaminated water from on top of the stack back then, the company could have prevented most of it from releasing into the aquifer. However, Mosaic did nothing and later referred to Rice’s comments as “wildly speculative.” When these toxic releases occur, phosphate officials either try to hide the spills or offer little in the way of mitigating collateral damage. Florida’s phosphate industry is the direct cause for severe environmental accidents that repeatedly occur, and yet they continue to deny any negligence.

At least six other gypsum stacks in central Florida have already failed with devastating environmental impacts, and Florida’s drinking water is continually at risk. While we would think that the phosphate industry is not intent on contaminating Florida’s freshwater reserves, this brings to mind a memorable quote from the 1987 movie Wall Street, “the main thing about money, is that it makes you do things you don’t want to do.” For the phosphate industry, money certainly seems to have become more important than human lives and the environment that sustains us all. We can see the enormous greed involved here, because Florida’s elected officials know about these practices and yet do absolutely nothing to stop them.

Sources:

“Florida Sinkholes Created By Phosphate Mining,” Florida Mines

“Mosaic, state should have seen sinkhole forming, experts say,” Tampa Bay Times, February 10, 2017

29 thoughts on “more on the Rape of Florida!”

This could be worse then Bhopal, because this is going to be constant, all the time, under blessing of one bureaucrat in service of oligarchy who bought new car for being good toward those he needs (those upper then him in hierarchy). If bureaucrat says everything is fine, and investors have money to invest in to lawyers also. Then they have justice also on their side. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhopal_disaster

Only democratic online feudalism can make some difference. Noble military people must become new aristocracy and take matter in their hands territorially. It was enough. Capitalists are unable to care for common good. They say without them common good cannot exist as they are indespensable, therefore it is not important how many people dies for them if they are indespensable, and if there is no alternative how Churchill said. No alternative no freedom.

Even Chomsky said they are not to be supported (as they are doing more damage to them)… But this m@ron did. Imagine if your material security depends on human above you, this is what you get. Same with everything. No logic, for public to even try comprehend, no reason for 99% (even Chomsky is again them) https://www.infowars.com/air-force-vet-slams-paul-ryan-for-defending-antifa/

Capitalists on west are parasites inside west, their goal is islamization for them to get more of slaves, who are much cheaper to be controled. After 40 years they will get unified space of Norther Africa, Europe, MIddle East, Central Asia, and half of South Asia, under islam with them on top with much lower cost of rule. Turkey is model for them.

Capitalism and capitalists can exist, and should exist because capitalism along fedualism, slavery and sociali.m always exist In every economy. They always go together, but capitalists as ruling class, they cannot bw allowed to not have any political power as class. Capitalist class if they become ruling class, they are not christian, because that is not profitable, for them christianity is obstacle. For communists, christanity is competition. Therefore if they are ruling class or caste (communists), there are less of christianity. They both are totalitarian. https://www.infowars.com/european-supermarket-erased-crosses-from-packaging-because-it-respects-diversity/

White youth must organize and start killing white capitalists because they conducted genocide with cultural marxism over white kids (removed material resources from white families), and today white youth does not have any political power in “western” democracies because now muslims are that political block, they will have. Older whites are very happy because they gets poor white youths serving cheaply they capital they accumulated while western societies were way more sociali.st in cold war. Perfect colaition, of old white non racists, and muslim/mexican youth. Maybe Hitler was also right about old people.

Old whites now are planning to live longer and longer. Best is to kill own white parents because to kill muslims is racist. And you get banned on facebook. White parents are mostly guilty that young people are not racist today. They did not have mexicans and muslims abolishing their middle class polit-economical rights. And now those parents only wants their non racists stability to die in peace. They counted everything, for them it is perfect :D. And they keep real estates until end. Oh and such vote for Merkel, Macron, Hillary… They are even bigger enemies then muslims. Them and young entrepreneurs (muslim kebab owners). This is not going to end up well.

Luckily Canadian government is little above CIA amateurs, they are not allowing g@ys to influence future of Canada. They banned muslim grup of g@ys to attend g@y pride because that is insult to muslim culture. White kids are good as g@ys but not muslim kids. That is material evidence that goal is Islam. Rulers are not 100% insane obviously like they are pretending, they know very well how to destroy one group and protect other. Capitalists learned that in colonies, now when they are weak and unable to impose their will on others they are doing that on us. Islam is their only chance to survive. http://www.dnevno.hr/vijesti/svijet/kanada-zabranila-sudjelovanje-grupi-muslimana-na-gay-prideu-jer-vrijedaju-muslimane-1057431/

Luckily Canadian government is little above CIA amateurs, they are not allowing g@ys to influence future of Canada. They banned muslim grup of g@ys to attend g@y pride because that is insult to muslim culture. That is material evidence that goal and future is Islam, they are new whites. Protected ruling group and backbone of society.

White kids are good as g@ys but not muslim kids. That is material evidence that goal is Islam. Rulers are not 100% insane obviously like they are pretending, they know very well how to destroy one group and protect other. Capitalists learned that in colonies, now when they are weak and unable to impose their will on others they are doing that on us. Islam is their only chance to survive.

Trump is really real deal. He is so logical and just toward reason and causality. US is becoming country again.
Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
The United States is considering, in addition to other options, stopping all trade with any country doing business with North Korea.

Hurricane Harvey showed face of America. We can all pray Trump seal and cement his influence and trust among people. Finally some normal president. There really was not reason at all for US to go fascist in 1986. But US got out of it alone, even usually and historically that is impossible. Interestingly UK never went fascist. In cold war US was good guy. When there was secret drill by communist JNA (yugoslav national army), where NATO was attacking, all communist “elite” that morning was on airports trying to fly off to west.

Dinesh is teaching us rightly, about what is left and what is right. He is great guy. He is so calm while he is talking about left even he
in every line tells how awful they are. I was thinking deeply alos about what Doug Casey said, and he really have point, if everything would be private, then there would be no homeless people. That is factual fact. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBr–frSgrQ

Russia and China are same like Serbs. Russia and China are telling that NK will stop testing missles flying over forign countries while SK and US must stop military exercises on inside own country. East always likes to prented stupid when they lie. Siberia must be blocked to work for China. We cannot allow Russian people to again fall in to bondage, yes Russian genes and religion demands of them to be slaves of Chinese, but Russian literature is not. https://www.infowars.com/unacceptable-china-slams-trumps-threat-to-end-commerce-with-n-koreas-trade-partners/

DR. Steve, my weekly news letter from Toyko suggested that the people need to be moved at least 60 miles inland to protect them from Cat 4 Irma. This storm will be bigger than Harvey with more devatstation. People are urged to seek higher ground & shelter. The author Benjamin Fulford was Forbes editor for Japan for 5 or 6 yrs. before he resigned. Please read & prepare for your self, family, & friends. Fulford is correct much more than other prognosticators especially on the middle-east & the petrodollar.

Thanks for the info Jim. Seems the only way they KNOW that Irma will be bigger than Harvey is because Irma is being manipulated. Am keeping an eye on Irma’s satellite imagery. My winter FL house is inland, 75 miles from either coast in the highlands. Yeah I worry about it but nothing I can do 3000 miles away except PRAY. If anyone needs to go inland, you may park in my yard!

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